A study published Thursday detailed how a parasitic worm turns its victims into zombies by stealing their DNA, and it sounds absolutely Godless.
The parasitic horsehair worm lives in the guts of praying mantises, and gives their victims the most horrific end-of-life experience you could ever imagine. It’s long been understood these worms somehow compel their victims to walk toward a body of water and drown themselves, according to LiveScience.
The new study finally figured out how horsehair worms manage to force their victims to commit suicide. It turns out, these worms steal their victim’s genetic code, and turn the mantises’ genes against them.
Scientists Really Do Study Fungus To Mitigate A ‘Last Of Us’ Style Apocalypse | @DailyCaller
Or are they accidentally creating a super fungal cataclysm? Only time will tell! https://t.co/UsTOLz7GVK
— KAY SMYTHE (@KaySmythe) February 10, 2023
“Strikingly, many of the horsehair worm genes that could play important roles in manipulating their hosts were very similar to mantid genes, suggesting that they were acquired through horizontal gene transfer,” author Tappei Mishina said in a statement. (RELATED: ‘It’s Just A Matter Of Time’: Scientists Issue Warning As Deadly, Ebola-Like Virus Spreads)
Horsehair worms typically reside in ponds, streams and other types of freshwater sources before hitching a ride on other insects headed to shore. Once a mantis or cricket eats the worm, it grows extremely quickly inside the bodies of their host. Eventually, the worm takes full control of their victim’s genetic code, sending off signals that force the host to return the worms to the water, per the study.